This, that and the other — a closer look at some of today’s draft picks, the upcoming QOs and more

I’ll try to avoid the easy way out and not simply cut-and-paste the latest online and print edition story on Day 2 of the NHL draft. But I won’t mind if you take a minute to follow the link in the right-hand column and check it out.

That way I can try to throw some fresh material into this latest post, knowing we’re on the same footing as far as the basics elsewhere.

Really, go ahead.

OK, you’re back now.

The problem with draft-day coverage is you’ll be hard-pressed to find a team that isn’t going to say it got the players it wanted. You play the hand you’re dealt, even when the cards are chosen and not randomly dealt.

But credit Doug Wilson with acknowledging what should be obvious: You don’t really know how you’ve done until a lot of time has passed.

“I think we’re pleased with what we accomplished today,” he began, “but the truth certainly will be in future years when these guys come and help our hockey team.”

*****So what else is there to say about the players chosen by San Jose? We’ll let director of scouting Tim Burke have the floor.

First, on Chris Tierney, who didn’t put up big numbers and didn’t get a lot of ice time playing for the London Knights. Still, were the Sharks attracted by the fact he played on a team that has produced a lot of high-end NHL players? After all, they took Tierney well above his projected spot.

“Not really,” said Burke before framing things from only a slightly different vantage point.

“He was a good younger player on a real good team that had a lot of good players. He should be able to step up into another role next year,” Burke said. “On a bad team, he probably goes higher because he’s going to be seen more.”

If you argue that Tierney was taken too soon, by the same standard — at at least Central Scouting’s — you can say the Sharks stole Daniel O’Reagan at 138th. After all, he was projected as North America’s 76th best skater.

O’Reagan drew a lot of attention for his background. His father, Tom, scored five goals and 17 points in 61 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins before spending a decade playing in Germany.

Burke was asked to compare the father and son as players.

“The old man was a good player. . . . I think they’re a little different,” Burke said.
Daniel “plays every part of the rink. Hes got the speed and the ability to stay on the inside even though hes not big. . . . He doesn’t take off early like a lot of smaller guys do or take the long way around at times.

“His father didn’t have the exposure this kid has at a younger age,” Burke said. “I told his father he’s going to be better than him and he better be.”

Burke also talked about Daniel O’Regan’s size — 5-foot-9, 165 pounds.

“He’s not the biggest guy, but he plays above his size,” the director of scouting said. “He was one of those guys we didn’t move up to take and we were lucky. We thought he might fall because of his size.”

And then there’s the Sharks final pick — the one, it turns out, with the most intriguing background. His life isn’t a perfect parallel to Douglas Murray’s, but Joakim has lived in Sweden, represented that country in international competition and currently plays for Cornell (whose web site provides much of what follows).

Joakim Ryan holds dual citizenship. His mother is former tennis pro Catarina Lundqvist, who was good enough to win several WTA tournaments and reached the semifinals at Wimbledon; his father is William Ryan, her former agent. The family owns a racquet club in New Jersey.

Without getting into all the complications, the IIHF has ruled Joakim has not me their residency requirements to continue to play for Sweden and now he could be competing for the United States down the road.

*****The Sharks weren’t ready to say how soon they thought their first-round pick, Tomas Hertl, might be ready to play in North America rather than the men’s elite league where he competes in the Czech Republic.

In fact, that was going to be on the agenda when Burke and Wilson were finished with their media duties this afternoon.

“It’s not our call as much as we’ve got to get through this preliminary phase with him and his agent,” Burke said. “I’m not going there.”

*****The deadline for NHL teams to extend qualifying offers to their restricted free agents is Monday, but Wilson wasn’t ready Saturday to say who would — or wouldn’t — be getting one.

“We’re just about to meet now,” he said. “We’ve got some decisions we’ve got to make on some things, but we’re 99 percent there.”

*****Finally, worth noting that the Carolina Hurricane used the 2nd round draft pick obtained from the Sharks in the 2011 deal for Ian White to select Brock McGinn, Jamie’s brother. Worlds collided.

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David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.

We still have a long way to go as far as changes are concerned to become a better team.

DW says he wants more aggressive PK…. ummmm that was pretty clear in Nov and Dec, so why wait until after the season is lost to propose such an obvious change.

DW also says he was disappointed in how the team responds to other teams taking shots at SJs best players…….

Well DW built this team and this passive attitude has defined this group for the last 5-6 years soooooo………. I am not sure where this newly formed disappointment comes from.

The owners stated DW has a team plan years in advance and this team has had the same make-up for the last 5-6 years now sooooooooo….. I am not exactly sure where the acting shock and obvious criticism comes from.

Its been clear for a few years now.

Also- the owners bring up 15 million dollars in lost money but then claim its not a big deal- well, why bring it up… because it obviously is a big deal, in this small market. It also shows how stuck this organization is right now- if you believe the owners and SJ lost 15 million and the team made it to the POs and lost in the first round- how much do you think they will be on the hook to lose if the team decided to rebuild and sit at the bottom of the division for 1-2 years???
DW plan has built a team that can make the POs but thats as far as it goes. Handcuffed by overpaid contracts, I think this team comes back for at least the next year as is with minor changes in fear of the shallow SJ support and revenue losses.

Couture for Nash is a joke. The small offensive upside doesnt justify the huge salary increase. Nash stock decreases every year so Couture has much bigger upside. Only way Nash works is to move Marleau and his bloated contract- otherwise it doesnt make sense IMO…

thats it………… how are peeps around here?

Snow Shovel

I say ban Iafraidy for not honoring poems!

2Minutes4Whining

Still a lot of speculation about Nash, but what does everybody think about Bobby Ryan? He’s younger than Nash (only 25), has a smaller cap hit ($5.1 vs. $7.8 million), and we might be able to get him without giving up Couture. He’s scored 30 goals or more for the past 4 seasons in a row, and has made it VERY clear that he’s unhappy in Anaheim…I imagine he’d have no trouble getting motivated to make our division rivals regret losing him.

Possible obstacles would be his (and his dad’s) public mentions of how much he loves Philly, and Anaheim’s potential reluctance to deal within the division.

What do you think it would take to land him? Could we package Marleau (bringing joy to all the PM haters) and another strong young player? Given the Stuart acquisition, it would seem we have some flexibility and could include a blue-liner in the deal.

Renoshark

Wingels gets 2 year extension. Glad to see it. Good for him.

slappy

2Minutes4Whining@153

Bobby Ryan would be great. Bob Murray would be nuts to trade him to us.

IF – big IF – Ducks even considered such a trade with us, they would demand an overpayment from a division rival. Ducks are in rebuild mode (not Cup hungry NOW like the Penguins) so Marleau would not suit their needs.

Ducks are desperate for a top Dman #1 and they would want to replace Ryans scoring #2. Bobby Ryan was a #1 draft pick, taken after Crosby so they would definitely not accept “potential” like Wingels or Braun. They have cap space/internal budget space to take on more than Bobby Ryans salary in return. Both Pavs and Couture have a contract for 2 more years, but Couture would still be an RFA which is a huge plus for team in rebuild mode, that has just lost a high draft pick to UFA ( Schultz? sp?)

OK if I were GM Bob Murray, with 28 other GMs inquiring about Ryan – and I dont doubt that is happening as we speak…- having fans who despise the Sharks and would happily string me up a flag pole if I dont get a fantastic trade package from a div rival in return for a young 30 goal scoring Bobby Ryan, this is what I would demand:

Brent Burns + Couture OR
Brent Burns + Pavs + 1st round pick

slappy

Reno@154
Happy about Wingels. Amazed that McLaren got a QO. (???) Surprised that Sexsmith didnt receive a QO. Guess the FO has decided that Stalock and Sateri are the orgs top prospects and to give them lots of TOI with our affiliates.

i dont see any way a player of Ryans calibar gets traded within the same conference much less the same division.

i could see the devils making a run at him if they cant resign parise – i think he has roots on the East Coast also but could be wrong about that.

With the ages of Elias and Brodeur – the devils have a small window to return to the cup finals and will need a young guy to replace them and play with IK.

Iafrate

Ferriero is not an NHL player- he had lots of chances the last few years and could never get his game up to the NHL level. I highly doubt he cracks another NHL roster…Patrick Rissmiller anyone? anyone?

JB

I have to agree about letting Ferriero walk; he’s had opportunities to stick to the everyday lineup but can’t matter with enough consistency. Not getting an offer didn’t come as surprise to me.

carcharodon_carcharias

Tommy Wingels is sticking around, best thing I’ve read in a long time, thank the hockey gods for that. Thank you DP for your columns, love reading you in the offseason, but the comment section, well, not so much; I do scroll through and read your replies though, they’re classic.

ZEKE

I called Ferriero a bubble guy earlier — and said this: Ferriero just isn’t very good and he’s not that young, but he can play a role because he’s not lost at the NHL level. And he can score. Assets that won’t allow him to play regularly, but also will make him a guy who gets on a roster.

Not surprised to see them decline to provide him a QO. But I’ll bet he sees some ice time with anNHL team. For all his flaws, he does find ways to score and that’s enough to get on a 4th line somewhere.

slappy

Hope another team takes a run @TJ or Sheppard.

In terms of players, who did not receive QOs from their team, who might warrant closer scrutiny from the FO as having potential for being cheap diamonds-in-the-rust UFA pick-ups – have noted some of HFs remarks/analysis with pros and cons:

Mueller ( Avs)-orig drafted 1st round (8th overall), 2006 – gifted center, described as a finesse player, can control play in the O zone, good size but fragile, injury prone the past 2 years – only played 32 (???) games total. Maybe a 1 year show me contract @ $1 M ( might fill a hole if Couture or Pavs gets traded?)

FireDougWilson

Ferriero, was a bubble player have to agree, but he is better then Pelch, and better then Sheppard, and based on his contract is probably a better player then TJ can’t skate. Let’s be honest here, the only reason why Wilson qualified TJ is to save face from his horrible deal last year.

While I agree he isn’t that good, he has shown he can score goals when given an opportunity.

renoshark

“Hope another team takes a run @TJ or Sheppard.”

slappy,

Gotta disagree. I would like to see what Galiardi can do with more than 14 regular season games under his belt. The kid can play. Providing, of course, he can play smart and within himself. Same with a healthy Sheppard. We just don’t know what we have with him yet.

Clemenza

Extension for Galiardi, eh? Interesting.

While he’s a paisan, I wasn’t impressed with his play….

FireDougWilson

I think Galiardi’s body of work is proven having played over 180 NHL regular season games. If the team has not been able to figure out what they have and don’t have in him then the scouting department is worse then I thought.

Any word on Petrecki, or Mashinter btw

ZEKE

Galliardi didn’t merit a QO, but he was going to get one anyway because its part of DW needing to save face on that deal.

puckace

Wasn’t Cameron MacIntyre supposed to be a big deal when he was signed as a free agent a couple years ago? I know he got injured, but I guess he’s a good example of the hype not measuring up to NHL realities.

I am surprised at Sexsmith not being signed. He looked pretty good a couple years ago in Stockton. Must have had a rough year in Woosta.

Glad to see Desi, Wingels, and Stalock back.

Not sure why McLaren was signed. Liked Benn but understand why he was let go.

On to July 1st…

slappy

reno@170

Imo we know what we have with TJ – a 4th liner ( at best) with zero hockey IQ, who can be counted on to take stupid penalties on a regular basis to give our #28 ranked PK units alot of TOI practice thru the year. Sacco gave him chances and finally benched him for being a repeat dumb penalty taking offender. TM gave him multiple chances, finally benching him a few games ( oh yeah we were told TJ had some vaguely worded day to day injury – sure he did…) only to have him take penalties again – lucky for us that he did not get assessed a 5 minute major for his dangerous hit on Andy Macdonald, not that we won that game even with his 2 minute minor. But whatever. Just sayin’ TJ is a costly penalty waiting to happen – good judgement cannot be taught.

Whatever you saw in him with the Avs must have shown itself long ago, cause it has not shown itself whatsoever this past season either with the Avs or with us.

Sheppard – thats another example of a draft pick throw away for nothing imo – any pro athlete who drives an ATV for “fun” has questionable judgement and commitment to his career and to his team. Anyone who also drives aforementioned ATV into a tree is X – fill in the blanks …

Renoshark

FDW,

Galiardi’s body of work is better than McGinn’s body of work. And he’s played about 40 games less than McGinn. He obviously needs to play smarter, stay healthy and be more consistent but he’s worth a QO in my opinion.

Renoshark

Slappy,

You may very well be right. Sacco has been known to throw a few players in the dog house though. Duchene and Mueller included. I’m just not as down on Galiardi as most are here. If he can improve between the ears, he can be a valuable 3/4 line player. I have no idea what to expect from Sheppard though. Is he healthy yet?

Sharkattax

168 slappy

Agree wholeheartedly about UFA Peter Mueller. Only 24, a skilled skater with hands, dazzled in Juniors up in Everett, WA, showed promise with Coyotes, never really fit in with the Avs before injuries. Definately worth a look-see because when healthy definately a top-6 player. I know, I know…..another center!

Renoshark

Mueller would be a great pick-up if he could stay healthy. His talent is legit.

slappy

reno@177
“Is he healthy yet?”
lol! very good question – cant tell just just going by the FO making a QO, what with the face keeping factor in play…

As for TJs potential – sorry to be so gloomy – but I cant stop thinking about the penalty taking propensity, the bumble bee zooming around with no real purpose…and then of course theres the Ginner Gone for This? question simmering in the back of my mind…

Really hope Shep and TJ are productive for the Sharks next season, but am not holding my breath for that to happen.

ZEKE

new post … and seriously Reno, Galiardi has better body of work than McGinn? Seriously?

Renoshark

Zeke,

What are you disputing specifically? Better offensive numbers in less games played is one. 36 less games. Plus/minus edge to Galiardi. Although neither is good. Blocked shots edge to Galiardi. McGinn has more hits and slightly more shots on goal. Galiardi has less overall PIM but does have a higher PIM per game average. I was mainly referencing the offensive comparisons since Galiardi rarely gets credit for that part of his game.

You sure do understand what youre referring to. Man, this website is merely great! I cant wait to see really what youve reached say. Im really happy that we came across this when I did because I was really starting to lose interest with all the whole blogging scene. Youve turned me around, man!